COMPANIES

Dethroned: Founders who were nudged out from their companies

Loknath Das

Naresh Goyal: Founder and chairman of Jet Airways, Goyal was the latest victim as he stepped down from his post on March 25 in a bid to protect his company from bankruptcy. Financial crisis at Jet was getting worse for the past six months, with stakeholders demanding Goyal’s resignation. The founder of India’s oldest airline, Goyal finally gave in “for the sake of my family of 22,000 employees and their respective families”. (Image: Reuters)

1/10Naresh Goyal | The founder of Jet Airways stepped down from the chairman’s post on March 25 to protect his company from bankruptcy. The financial condition of the airline was deteriorating for the past six months, with stakeholders demanding Goyal’s resignation. He finally gave in “for the sake of my family of 22,000 employees and their respective families”, according to Jet Airways. (Image: Reuters)

Binny and Sachin Bansal: The co-founders of Flipkart, India's largest e-commerce platform, exited the company at different instances. Sachin left when US retail giant Walmart bought a controlling stake in Flipkart in 2018. Binny on the other hand resigned after an independent probe was launched against him for sexual harassment charges. Image: Flipkart)

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Binny and Sachin Bansal | The co-founders of Flipkart, India’s largest e-commerce platform, exited the company on different occasions. Sachin left when US retail giant Walmart bought controlling stake in the company in 2018. Binny, on the other hand, resigned after an independent probe was initiated against him on alleged sexual harassment charges. (Image: Flipkart)

Eduardo Saverin: Along with Mark Zuckerberg, Saverin co-founded the biggest social networking platform in the world, Facebook in 2005. Zuckerberg diluted his stake in the company booted him out. (Image: Reuters)

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Eduardo Saverin | Along with Mark Zuckerberg, Saverin co-founded Facebook, the largest social networking platform in the world in 2005. Zuckerberg diluted his stake in the company and booted him out the same year. (Image: Reuters)

BV Raju | The founder and chairman of Raasi Cements, Raju (inset) faced a hostile takeover bid from India Cements Limited in 1998. Raju and the company put up stiff resistance and at one point, it did seem that the takeover bid would be thwarted. However, some key shareholders, which included close relatives, struck a deal with ICL Chairman N Srinivasan, sealing Raju's fate. Raju had to give in and ICL increased their stake in the company to 85 percent later. (Image: BV Raju/Reuters)

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BV Raju | The founder and chairman of Raasi Cements, Raju (inset) faced a hostile takeover bid from India Cements Limited in 1998. Raju and the company put up stiff resistance and at one point, it did seem that the takeover bid would be thwarted. However, some key shareholders, which included close relatives, struck a deal with ICL Chairman N Srinivasan, sealing Raju’s fate. Raju had to give in and ICL increased their stake in the company to 85 percent later. (Image: BV Raju/Reuters)

Andrew Mason: Groupon was founded by Mason in 2006 and he was CEO of the company in 2013. The trust of the board members in him depleted after he made a series of bad choices for the company and was asked to leave. (Image: Reuters)

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Andrew Mason | Groupon was founded by Mason in 2006 and he was CEO of the company until 2013. Trust of the board members depleted in him after he made a series of bad choices for the company, following which he asked to step down. (Image: Reuters)

Travis Kalanick: In 2017, cab hailing company Uber’s founder Kalanick was accused of sexual harassment in multiple cases, which led to him being kicked out of his company. Kalanick founded the app company in 2009. By 2017, Uber was worth an estimated $70 billion. (Image: Reuters)

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Travis Kalanick | In 2017, Uber’s founder Kalanick was accused of sexual harassment in multiple cases, which led to him being kicked out of his company. Kalanick founded the app in 2009. By 2017, Uber was worth an estimated $70 billion. (Image: Reuters)

Steve Jobs: He founded Apple, one of the most successful tech companies in the world. However, he was fired from his company in 1985 after a power struggle with John Sculley, the CEO he had hired. Jobs returned to the company 12 years later and held the position of CEO till 2011.

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Steve Jobs | He founded Apple, one of the most successful tech companies in the world. However, he was once fired from the company in 1985 after a power struggle with John Sculley, the CEO he had hired. Jobs returned to the company 12 years later and held the position of CEO until 2011. (Image: Reuters)

Jack Dorsey: There were reports that the founder of microblogging website Twitter spent more time pursuing yoga and fashion designing than running the company. This led to his ousting in 2008. He returned to Twitter as Executive Chairman in 2011.

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Jack Dorsey | There were reports that the founder of Twitter spent more time pursuing yoga and fashion designing than running the company. This led to his ouster in 2008. He returned to Twitter as Executive Chairman in 2011. (Image: Reuters)

Sandy Lerner: After co-founding Cisco in 1984 with her then husband, Lerner was forced out of her company due to a bad deal with a venture capitalist. She was ousted by the board led by Sequoia Capital’s Don Valentine in 1990.

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Sandy Lerner | After co-founding Cisco in 1984 with her then-husband, Lerner was forced out due to a bad deal with a venture capitalist. She was ousted by the board led by Sequoia Capital’s Don Valentine in 1990. (Image: Reuters)

Arunabh Kumar: YouTube content channel The Viral Fever (TVF) was in the news in 2017, not for its videos. Founder Arunabh Kumar was accused of sexual harassment and had to resign as CEO of the company. (Image: Twitter)

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Arunabh Kumar | YouTube content channel The Viral Fever (TVF) was in the news in 2017, not for its videos. Founder Kumar was accused of sexual harassment and had to resign as CEO of the company. (Image: Twitter)

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